I thought I needed a technical cofounder. I'm not so sure anymore.
When I was 23, I spent a ridiculous amount of time going to founder events around San Francisco because I was convinced I needed a cofounder.
Not just any cofounder either.
I wanted someone technical, someone who could think through the product with me, and ideally someone good at marketing. Basically, I was looking for three different people in one person.
It didn't work.
I met a lot of founders at events, coffee meetups, demo days and random conversations after talks, but I never found the person I was looking for.
At some point, I stopped going to these events with the mindset of “maybe I'll find my cofounder tonight.”
I just started meeting people.
I'd ask what they were building, what they were struggling with, what they were working on. Sometimes we'd exchange numbers and never speak again. Sometimes we'd grab coffee. A few of them became friends.
And then something funny happened.
Some of the founders I originally thought might become my cofounders eventually became my customers instead.
That wasn't even my plan.
I had started going to these rooms because I wanted someone to help me build a company.
I ended up building three apps and eventually reached around $10K MRR with just 11 paying customers.
And those 11 customers weren't random people I found through some complicated sales funnel.
They were founders I'd met along the way.
Looking back, I think I was approaching networking completely wrong at the beginning.
I was walking into rooms thinking:
“Who here can help me?”
Later, I started walking in thinking:
“Who can I learn from, and who can I get to know?”
That small change made a huge difference.
When you're constantly looking for what someone can do for you, people can feel it.
But when you actually take an interest in people, conversations become much easier. You learn what they're building, what problems they have and where you might be able to help each other.
And sometimes, six months later, that person is the customer you never expected to have.
So these days I try not to enter a room with a selling mindset.
You never really know where a relationship is going to lead.
The person you think should be your cofounder might end up being your first customer instead.
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This is beautifully written, i use to run an SEO agency before now, and everytime i always use the same word when talking to our teams " Don't create a marketing illusion Just friendship that leads to connection that is the best strategy to win anyone"
That shift from “I need a cofounder” to “I just need to meet people” is interesting. Looking at where you are now, do you still feel there’s a capability gap you’d eventually want another person to fill, or has building solo changed what you think you actually need?
Currently I do not have any Gap, I think I just found a better way of creating more connections than actual friends. I focus more on buying event ticket and attending events. Now I manage a team of 8 so everything seems to be working fine 😎
Something I learnt from this post is intention Intent and control, What you explained was a coincidence to me but later became a good story pattern the goal is never walk into a room with the intention to sell rather enter with a free mind, everything will fall into place naturally, make friends, laugh share contacts and move on they can later become your customers this is too real for me to comprehend thanks for sharing this masterpiece Daniel.
Thanks Nick 🤠, We learn new things Everytime. Now I focus on learning asking more questions, laugh share contacts and move and when we meet again we become more friends than connections 😊 But the takeaway is never show the expectations of receiving without the strength of giving.
This is the best piece of resource I have bookmarked today
Glad you find it useful Nick 🐱